Fraternity Suspended

The national office of the Phi Kappa Tau fraternity has suspended its chapter at the University of Colorado in Boulder.

The fraternity's house in Boulder will be closed at least for the rest of the academic year, and no date for reinstatement has been announced. Fraternity officials have declined to detail the alleged violations but say it has nothing to do with an investigation into suspected alcohol poisoning of nine women.

Nine women were taken to the hospital about two weeks ago. Investigators later determined that most of the women drank alcohol at parties at the Phi Kappa Tau or Sigma Pi fraternity houses. And police say two of the women may have been given a date-rape drug.

Police say a women reported that remembering drinking only one beverage before she fell ill. Toxicology tests found she and at least one other woman had ingested GHB, a powerful depressant.

Phi Kappa Tau national chief executive officer Steve Hartman says the culture of the CU chapter was not representative of the national fraternity's values nor the values of the overall Greek community in Boulder.

The Greek system at CU has been in turmoil since 18-year-old freshman Lynn Gordon Bailey Junior died in September 2004 after a night of heavy drinking during an event at the fraternity house where he was a pledge.

After Bailey's death, the university gave the Greek system several requirements to be recognized as an official student group. The fraternities refused, deciding instead to operate independently from CU.

Online Public Information File

Viewers with disabilities can get assistance accessing this station's FCC Public Inspection File by contacting the station with the information listed below. Questions or concerns relating to the accessibility of the FCC's online public file system should be directed to the FCC at 888-225-5322, 888-835-5322 (TTY), or fccinfo@fcc.gov.